Israel Adesanya has joined up with a famed coach who has been branded the ‘toughest man alive’ as he pushes towards a UFC comeback.
Two-time middleweight champion Adesaya once looked unbeatable, but has been on a tough streak of results the past few years. Since July of 2022, he has gone 1-4 including stoppage defeats to Alex Pereira, Dricus Du Plessis and Nassourdine Imavov.
Now, he is eyeing up a potential rematch with the other man on that four-person list; Sean Strickland. And he has enlisted one of the controversial former champion’s many enemies to help him train and get in peak shape for the second chance.
Israel Adesanya links up with David Goggins ahead of UFC comeback
Israel Adesanya has been back in training recently as he looks to move past his three recent defeats into a new era for his career. After being knocked out by Nassourdine Imavov in Saudi Arabia, fans were unsure if he would retire, but he seems to now have returned to camp.
In order to reach a new level of fitness, he has been spotted teaming up with David Goggins, the famed influencer and Navy SEAL who holds myriad records for endurance athletics. He is believed to be one of the toughest men on the planet, and puts on workouts only for elite performers.
Goggins is based in Las Vegas, where Adesanya is visiting to take in WrestleMania. And the pair have been training together regularly, with the former Middleweight champion writing that he “must seek pain” by working with the former SEAL.
Adesanya has long been one of the UFC’s great fighters, and will enter the Hall of Fame for his fight with Kelvin Gastelum this year. He is a veteran of five-round MMA fights, but will likely be put through another level of training by Goggins who runs the infamous ‘hell week’ program.
The influencer previously cornered Tony Ferguson for his fight with Paddy Pimblett, in which he was able to go the distance with the Brit despite being on his last legs career-wise. Ferguson is the last fighter to last the distance with Pimblett, and one of just two in the UFC.
Israel Adesanya reportedly keen on Sean Strickland rematch for octagon return
Should be make his return later this year or early next, it appears that Israel Adesanya wants to get back on the man who took his title from him second time around; Sean Strickland. The Goggins partnership adds another wrinkle to the beef, as he famously feuded with the middleweight contender.
“Another thing with Izzy, he was saying he’s kinda enjoying his life,” Coach Tim Welch said on his YouTube channel after getting some training in with ‘Stylebender’. “Before, he was just taking all these back-to-back fights.
“If you look at some of the old pay-per-views, every other pay-per-view, he was the headliner of… He seemed like he was wanting that Strickland fight back,”
